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To the neverending debates about games as art, Tom Newman would like to say: shut up already. Actually, he said it in a much more educated, eloquent way, delving into the gradual conception of the modern Western view of "art" -- and its arguable demise.

In games, animation is not just a part of visual aesthetics -- it can add significantly to the fundamental gameplay experience. Here, animator Christiaan Moleman highlights the ways that games like Ico, Outcast, Assassin's Creed, and the Half-Life series exhibit that principle.

While not a new mechanic by any means, in just a few years, the quick time event has become practically ubiquitous across all direct-control-based game genres. But they have plenty of critics; here, Aaron Pierce deems them "lazy game design" and explains why. He calls for discussion in the comments, and gets plenty of it.

The number of times meaningful discussion about games is waylaid by a dismissive comment like "Well, none of that matters as long as it's fun" is enraging to me -- and apparently to Reid Kimball as well. It's a vague term, and it doesn't come close to describing all the ways entertainment can succeed. Here, he argues for additional alternative adjectives such as "engaging."